A long-awaited police report on an Oct. 10 incident indicates a deputy fired 15 rounds from an AR-15 rifle at an armed suicidal woman in her driveway, striking her twice.

Michelle Gentry, 54, survived and pleaded not guilty Thursday to felony assault on a police officer. 

A summary of the report was released Friday by the Flathead County Attorney’s Office. The report and the accompanying summary had been completed five weeks ago, but the county attorney refused to release the full incident report, citing the Montana Criminal Justice Information Act, “the purposes of which are to both protect Ms. Gentry’s privacy and to ensure that she is afforded a fair trial in Flathead County.”

According to the report compiled by the Kalispell Police Department, SWAT team leader Caleb Pleasants — a Flathead County deputy — struck the county’s Peace Keeper armored vehicle with his first volley of rounds before checking his rifle for a malfunction and then firing again, hitting Gentry twice.

Although Gentry told negotiators earlier that if law enforcement came to her home she would come out and make them shoot her, Pleasants was never told of her statements until after he had shot her, the report said.

When Gentry exited her house, she aimed a revolver at law enforcement while screaming, “Do it, do it, do it, do it [expletive] now.” The report does not say that Gentry ever fired her weapon, only that it appeared she was trying to fire the gun at some point.

An internal Sheriff’s Office shooting review board later determined that Pleasants followed Sheriff’s Office policy during the shooting, and the case is officially closed in regard to the force used by the police against Gentry.

The incident began to unfold when staff members at Pathways Treatment Center called police to share their concern about Gentry’s welfare. They had been contacted by a woman at whose house Gentry’s daughter had slept the night before.

That woman had told them Gentry’s daughter described her mother as being suicidal and acting violently.

Two sheriff’s deputies went to Gentry’s 155 Eastland Crossroad home and contacted her by phone. During their conversation, Gentry told them of her intentions.

“Gentry stated that she did not want the assistance of the Flathead County Sheriff’s Office and that she had a loaded gun,” the report states. “Gentry further threatened that if deputies came to the residence, she would use the weapon and force them to shoot her.”

A pair of negotiators were dispatched from the Sheriff’s Office and tried unsuccessfully for two hours to get Gentry to exit her home. Undersheriff Dave Leib then determined the situation met the criteria for a SWAT response and sent the team to the home.

Despite Gentry’s statements about wanting to commit “suicide by cop,” none of those statements were relayed to Pleasants.

Kalispell Police Department Investigations Capt. Scott Warnell wrote in the summary of his interview with Pleasants that the deputy stated, “All he was briefed on was that it was a volatile situation and that Michelle had a gun and had made threats to use it. He said he did not know what Michelle’s exact intentions were, until after the incident.”

A command post was established near a sod barn southeast of Gentry’s home. When the SWAT team arrived, its members were placed in perimeter positions around the home, covering the north and west side to prevent her escape or anyone else from entering the residence.

The armored Peace Keeper vehicle was then brought in and parked on the southeast corner of the home to conceal deputies and allow cover for an arrest team in case Gentry surrendered.

According to the report, Gentry opened the north door of the home about 30 minutes later and brandished the handgun, screaming and waving it around, as well as “possibly attempting to fire the weapon,” then closed the door.

A few moments later, Gentry exited the home, walking between two vehicles in the driveway. The summary states that she was just 15 to 20 yards away from law enforcement when she came outside.

At that point, Pleasants later told Warnell, Gentry made eye contact with him and raised the handgun, pointing it directly at him.

“During that time, Gentry can be heard on the negotiators’ recording saying, ‘Do it, do it [expletive] now!” the report states.

Pleasants then fired the first volley from his AR-15 rifle at Gentry, but “the majority” of the rounds hit the cowling on the hood of the Peace Keeper.

He did not realize what was happening, believing his weapon had malfunctioned. He then took cover and checked the rifle, then looked up through the window of the Peace Keeper and saw Gentry continuing to approach at a brisk pace with her handgun raised.

Pleasants then fired a second volley, striking Gentry twice. She stumbled backward and collapsed between the two vehicles. A total of 15 rounds were fired, half of the 30 contained in a full magazine for the rifle.

The report states that initial negotiations with Gentry determined she was suicidal and homicidal.

“It is clear in the final minutes of recorded negotiations that Gentry was aware of law enforcement’s presence outside of her residence. She chose to unexpectedly exit and aggressively confronts the SWAT team with a gun while screaming, ‘Do it, do it, do it, do it [expletive] now,’ which appears to be a demand for them to shoot her,” the report states.

Warnell’s summary of the events of the standoff ends with the statement that Pleasants “used reasonable and necessary force to stop the threat presented by Gentry’s Felony Assault on a Peace Officer.”

Pleasants told Warnell that Gentry had aimed her handgun directly at his face. “I thought I was going to get shot,” Pleasants said.

Reporter Jesse Davis may be reached at 758-4441 or by email at jdavis@dailyinterlake.com.